Arsenal captain William Gallas exposes rifts at Emirates Stadium

William Gallas is no stranger to an emotional outburst, but even he would be forced to admit that his latest effort will take some beating.

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Lonely figure: William Gallas has launched attack on his team-mates.Photo: PA

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Loud enough? William Gallas shows his latest outburst is an explosive onePhoto: EPA

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Speaking out: William Gallas has risked the Arsenal captaincy by revealing dressing room unrest and a lack of faith in the fighting ability of his team-matesPhoto: AP

By Rory Smith

9:27PM GMT 20 Nov 2008

The Arsenal captain launched a withering assessment of Arsene Wenger's side's campaign so far, questioning his young team-mates' stomach for a scrap and revealing that rows on the pitch and in the dressing room are threatening to derail Arsenal's season.

Gallas, speaking while on international duty with France, says he was called upon to cool heads at half-time in the 4-4 draw with Tottenham and in another, unnamed Premier League game when two colleagues exchanged abuse.

The former Chelsea defender – who believes his chequered diplomatic history makes him a target for any criticism directed at the club – would like his bickering colleagues to show more maturity. "There are things that can't be said and can't be tolerated. When, as captain, some players come up to you and complain about a player and then during the match you speak to the one who has been criticised and he insults us, there comes a time when we can no longer comprehend how this can happen.

"I am trying to defend myself without giving names, otherwise I take all of the blame. It's very frustrating. I'm 31 and the player in question is six years younger than me.

"Against Tottenham, there was a problem at half-time. The only thing I could say to them was that we resolve these problems after the match, not in the break."

The picture painted by Gallas is of a squad more concerned with battling each other than some of their less illustrious opponents. It is clearly an issue which cuts the Frenchman to the quick. A fine display and two Samir Nasri goals may have put Manchester United to the sword, but limp defeats to Hull, Stoke, Fulham and, most recently, Aston Villa have all but finished off Arsenal's title challenge.

And so Gallas has issued a captain's cri de coeur, imploring his talented team-mates to make sure they add steel to the silk for which Wenger's sides have become famous. Without that, he fears, their already faint title hopes will disappear altogether.

He said: "We have to understand that to be champions, you have to play big matches every weekend and fight. Maybe against Manchester, the whole team fought for victory. But when you stop fighting together, there comes a time when the midfield will sink and the defenders can also sink. That's what happened against Villa.

"We are coming up against teams who are not scared to play football against us, who are not scared to take us on at our place, and this is becoming dangerous. We are not brave enough in battle. I think we need to be soldiers. We have to be warriors."

Gallas admitted that Wenger does not seem unduly concerned by his team's form – or, if he is, manages to "hide it well" – but the French international is certain that should Arsenal continue to lack fighting spirit, their title drought will continue this season.

They have not won the league since 2004 or a competition of any kind since the following year. Failure to unlock the trophy cabinet this season would make this period the worst Arsenal have endured for 25 years.

And that is not good enough, Gallas insists, for either him or an outfit of the Gunners' stature.

He said: "I have to win something this year. I have to. Arsenal have to. It's nearly four years since we won anything and that's not good.

"Another season without winning anything would be a kind of failure. But for me, the title is not over. It's true that we are nine points behind Chelsea, but you have to be optimistic. You can't give up.

"Four defeats is a lot but it's a long season. I think it will be very tight this year and we will have to hope that Chelsea draw a few and lose a few. We will have to see if I will stay if we don't win the title. We don't know what will happen between here and then."

Gallas on dressing-room unrest:

“When, as captain, some players come up to you and talk to you about a player ... complaining about him ... and then during the match you speak to this player and the player in question insults us, there comes a time where we can no longer comprehend how this can happen. I am trying to defend myself a bit without giving names. Otherwise I’m taking it all [the blame]. It’s very frustrating. I’m 31, the player is six years younger than me.”

Gallas on Arsenal’s draw with Tottenham:

“There was a problem at half-time. The only thing that I could say at half-time was ‘Guys, we resolve these problems after the match, not at half-time.”’

Gallas on Wenger’s kids compared to Ferguson’s home grown crop:

“They can have [the same success]. The problem is that the Manchester [United] youngsters have been through something, they have won something. [Today’s big contracts] make the difference, perhaps. You can rest on your laurels, that’s for sure.”

Gallas on danger of speaking out:

“There are things that can’t be said and can’t be tolerated.”

Gallas on Arsenal’s title bid:

“We have to understand that to be champions, you have to play big matches every weekend and fight. We are coming up against teams who are not scared to play football against us, who are not scared to take us on at our place, and this is becoming dangerous for Arsenal. We are not brave enough in battle. I think we need to be soldiers. We have to be warriors. There are teams who can do it well against us, and we have to be able to face up to these attacks. That is how they will forge their character, and how they will get experience. Even though they’ve played a certain number of matches, they’re still young and still learning.”

Gallas on Arsenal’s three season without a trophy:

“I have to win something this year. I have to win something, Arsenal has to win something. It’s four or five years since Arsenal won anything — 2004 [the league title]. That’s nearly five years, and that’s not good. For me the title is not over, it’s true that we are nine points behind Chelsea, but you have to be optimistic and you can’t give up.

“[Four defeats] is a lot, but it’s a long season. I think it will be very tight this year and we will have to hope that Chelsea draw a few games and have a few defeats.”

Gallas on Arsenal’s lack of fighting spirit:

“Maybe, against Manchester [United], it was the whole team that fought for victory. But when you stop fighting together, there comes a time when the midfield will sink, the defenders, unfortunately, can also sink. That’s what happened against Villa.”

So who's in the frame?

With Gallas revealing that the player who he clashed with was 25 and most of Arsenal's squad barely 21, the finger of suspicion will inevitably point towards 25-year-old Robin van Persie or the 24-year-old Emmanuel Adebayor, if the Frenchman has got his sums a bit wrong.